Farm to Plate

The Farm to Plate initiative directs the Vermont Sustainable Jobs Fund to create an economic development plan for Vermont agriculture and to raise and distribute funds to carry out the plan. The goal is to have Vermonters eating 20% local food by 2020 (as of 2009, we’re at about 3% statewide). This will not only mean we all have access to better food, it will also create hundreds of new jobs and make us more food secure. This is a very exciting initiative, and will do a lot to move Vermont toward Rural Vermont’s vision of Food with Dignity!

Rural Vermont worked hard during the 2009 legislative session, with Vermont Businesses for Social Responsibility, to get this initiative passed. The initiative survived all the way through, and made it into the final economic development bill, AND it is funded for $100,000. The full text of the bill can be seen here (Farm to Plate is Section 35, beginning on page 65 of the bill).

This bill is the culmination of years of work on the part of many organizations and individuals who have worked hard to promote Vermont’s local food economy. Visit our resources page for links to some of these groups’ websites.